The first job I ever had in the Montreal region was at a company called Bath Fitter, aka Bain Magique, up beyond Laval in a town called Saint Eustache. As I listened to the explanation of the pension benefits that I was entitled to, a repeat of conversations I’d had with prior employers in Edmonton, it dawned on me: I’ve never cared about this conversation, I still don’t care, and I actually feel it’s OK to not care, because I have very little faith that, by the time my retirement rolls around, the world that we know – mortgages, insurance plans, “financial security” etc. – will exist.

We’re delighted to share with you the names of the three finalists of the 2016 3Macs carte blanche Prize, as selected by juror, Nick Mount, who is the author of When Canadian Literature Moved to New York and is a professor of English at the University of Toronto. The big winner will be announced at the Quebec Writers’ Federation Gala on November 22 and will lay their hands on a cash prize and a most amazing trophy–originally handcrafted by Glen LeMesurier.

As part of our upcoming Issue 28, we are thrilled to present a commissioned interview between two of Canada’s best-loved writers of their generation, Madeleine Thien and Heather O’Neill. In this brief excerpt, Thien and O’Neill talk about their hometown, Montreal, O’Neill as a native and Thien as an adopted daughter of the city. Stay tuned to Issue 28 (which goes live on November 7) for the entire conversation.

Jenny Ferguson is a Canadian writer, editor, and teacher from many places. Her debut book, Border Markers (NeWest Press), a collection of interrelated flash fictions, was released this September. Brad de Roo chatted with her about the ambiguity of genres, the ubiquity of ghosts, and the reorienting power of flash. “Flash-or-micro fiction, as genre,” Jenny said, “likes to end on a turn, or a moment that asks the reader to re-evaluate what s/he has read.”

The 3Macs carte blanche Prize is awarded annually in recognition of an outstanding submission by a Quebec writer, artist or translator. The prize is sponsored by David Goodridge from MacDougall, MacDougall & MacTier (3Macs) Inc. We’re delighted to announce that this year’s finalists will be selected by professor, author and editor, Nick Mount, and announced at the Quebec Writers’ Federation Gala on November 22, 2016 at Montreal’s Corona Theatre.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m in a rough spot or running out of steam, looking back at a joyful moment helps.

For me, one of those moments happened last November, when I learned I’d been selected to be the CBC/QWF’s first writer-in-residence. I still grin when I remember jumping up from my chair when my name was called during the QWF Literary Awards Gala.

We’re doing it again! carte blanche and the Creative Nonfiction Collective Society (CNFC) have teamed up to bring you a Canada-wide creative nonfiction contest sponsored by the University of King’s College. The winner will receive $750 and her/his text will be published in carte blanche.

Avalon Moore is a comics artist based out of Nova Scotia that is releasing a few pages of her graphic novel, Between, online every week. Eve Nixen sat down with Avalon to talk about the creative process, relationships and finishing projects, no matter how challenging they become.

Writing about my experience of someone else’s death feels like a million acupuncture needles at once—I know it’s serving some mysterious purpose, but it feels strange, surreal, selfish. I’ve decided to trust that it will do some good, and frankly, I don’t know what else to do.